A major place in the history of France, the Fontainebleau castle has been one of the residences of French sovereigns since King Francis the First, who made it his favorite residence, until Napoleon III. Knowing that several kings left their personal mark on the royal castle, Fontainebleau – nicknamed “the house of centuries” by Napoleon the First – is the witness of the different periods of French history and resembles today an astonishing composite of different styles.
The castle is composed of medieval, Renaissance, classical and Napoleon III styles.
Of the medieval castle, only the keep remains.
But the 19th century elements still rub shoulders with the Renaissance elements imposed by King Francis the First. Seduced by the surrounding forest, the French sovereign carries out spectacular developments in 1528, by having the medieval palace rebuilt and enlarged into an Italian-style palace. As a matter of fact, the castle becomes the reflection of a king who loves arts and who wants to create a new Rome in Fontainebleau, where Italian artists would come to express their talent. What would become later the School of Fontainebleau probably represents the richest movement of Renaissance art in France.
A true cultural epicenter, the Fontainebleau castle also hosts many musical performances and balls, and French composers who follows the Court stay at the castle. This tradition is still alive and well, in a way, with the singer Lana Del Rey filming her video “Born to Die” there in 2012.
King Francis the First successors continue his work: the favorite castle of King Henri IV, Fontainebleau, by hosting the birth of the future Louis XIII, becomes the cradle of the Bourbon dynasty. The young Louis XIV comes there regularly, while Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette live a less stiff Court life there than at Versailles.
Having become an imperial palace, Fontainebleau retains the only Napoleonic Throne Room still in existence, but it is also in the castle that Napoleon the First abdicates and goes into exile on Elba. Napoleon III revives the splendors of the Empire there, with Empress Eugenia.
Some eight hundred years of history run through the one thousand five hundred rooms of the monumental castle.
The main courtyard called the Cour d’Honneur and the double horseshoe staircase
The Ministers’ aisle
Under the reign of Francis I, the church of the former Trinitarian convent is rebuilt and connected to the castle by the wing of the Francis the First’s gallery. It is not until the reign of Henry IV that the Chapel of the Trinity receives its current vault, the Spanish ambassador having pointed out to the King that his house in Fontainebleau “would be very beautiful if God were as well housed there as His Majesty”. Its exceptional decor, characteristic of what would later be called the Second School of Fontainebleau, prefigures the Baroque style and is not completed until 1633, under the reign of Louis XIII. It is in this imposing royal chapel that Napoleon III is baptized in 1810 on the knees of Napoleon the First.
The sumptuous ballroom is one of the most remarkable rooms in Fontainebleau. Decorated in the 16th century under the reign of Henry II, it provides the palace with a permanent ballroom, dedicated to the festivities of the Valois court. The rich ceiling is covered with lunar emblems and the King’s motto.
The guards room is adorned with a monumental fireplace.
Favorite of Francis the First, Anne de Pisseleu, duchess of Étampes, has a bedroom located immediately next to that of the French sovereign. The duchess of Étampes’ bedroom has an exceptional decoration by Primaticcio who, between 1541 and 1548, creates the precious stucco effigies, long and elegant, which harmoniously punctuate the fresco paintings narrating the loves of Alexander the Great. Converted into the King’s staircase between 1748 and 1749 by King Louis XV, part of the wall decoration is then preserved, before being restored and raised, under Louis-Philippe, with a neo-Renaissance false vault.
The Diana Gallery is the longest room in the castle – 80 meters long and 6 meters wide.
The Francis the First’s gallery connects the keep to the church of the Trinitarian convent and is undoubtedly the most emblematic room of the Fontainebleau castle. For the first time in France, a gallery of this size was created, mixing in an extraordinary abundance, carved wood paneling, putti, fruits and stucco cartouches with rolled leather motifs, forming a frame for frescoed compartments. It was the Florentine painter Rosso Fiorentino who, in the 1530s, designed this decor without any real precedent and without any real heir, calling upon allegorical language as well as ancient texts of History or mythology. This gallery initially had a private function, with King Francis the First keeping the key around his neck and giving access to it directly from his bedroom. It only becomes a public place with the relocation of the King’s bedroom at the end of the 16th century.
The silver boudoir of Marie-Antoinette is a marvel of refinement.
Former bedroom of the queens of France, the Empress’s Bedroom is successively inhabited by all the wives of the kings, from Marie de Medici to Marie-Antoinette. The large bed dates from Marie-Antoinette. The bed, separated from the rest of the room by a carved and gilded wooden balustrade, is a reminder that this room is a parade room where the sovereign’s private space is separated from the public space of the courtiers. The bed is not delivered for the queen until 1787 and Marie-Antoinette never has the opportunity to sleep there. It is the Empress Josephine who, after the Revolution, slept there and has the walls of her room hung with precious silks from the end of the 18th century.
The Tapestry Room is the Queen’s former guard room, before becoming an antechamber itself. With the lightening of etiquette in the 19th century, the former antechambers of the apartment lose their sobriety to become rich and comfortable reception rooms. The Tapestry Room is completely remodeled in 1835 during the reign of the last king of Fontainebleau, Louis Philippe. The new room is furnished with family tables around which the King, Queen and princesses gather.
The Fountain courtyard
Diane’s garden
The pond and the Fountain courtyard
March 27, 2026
